Reviews

The City on the Edge of Forever by Harlan Ellison

okelay's review against another edition

3.0

It is a great story. But I see why it was endlessly rewritten. It reminds me of moffat's one-off stories while RTD was in charge. Great stories that usually don't quite fit with the overall theme of the series.

I think Harlan Ellison would've been much better off writing an original story, or straight up writing fanfic, than trying to work with the constraints of canon

jthern's review against another edition

3.0

Again, I didn't pay attention to what book I was starting... Oh, a Harlan Ellison sci fi? Why not?

So I really didn't expect to jump into a feud between Roddenberry and Ellison, and I definitely had no intention of reading a Star Trek episode. But that's what I got. Alright.

Ellison's defense of his episode seems fair. I've heard some negative about Roddenberry before. The length of the complaint gets a bit tedious. Anyway....

As for the episode script itself? That part is great. I just wish I could have pictured it with better acting than Shatner could have provided.

suggoiai's review against another edition

5.0

This is a great version of Ellison's original screenplay. I had not read it in text before, though I had read James Blish's adaptation which tried to blend Ellison's and the final version. The artwork fits the story very well and the easter eggs (which are explained after the story) are nicely done. The old Gold Key comic afterward is silly by comparison, but again, a piece of Star Trek History.

strikingthirteen's review against another edition

3.0

The real test here is getting past Ellison's rant. I understand the rage if not the politics, I'd heard about some of the controversy about "City of the Edge of Forever" but not enough to even think about sides, but it's a long rant complete with long, long footnotes. Thirty years is a long time to hold a grudge and he's certainly venting but every time he urged you to read the screenplay I just kept wishing for him to shut up so I could.

Now it is a great screenplay and I would have love to have seen it filmed in comparison to the aired version, which is not my favourite episode ever but I do love it. There is no way it would have made it though. WE have drug dealers, a heck of a lot of bonding going on between Kirk and Spock, and we don't meet Edith Keeler right away. It's also not quite Star Trek. Everyone's just slightly off, I think Spock more so than anyone else.

It's certainly a must read for Star Trek fans. If only to wonder what could have been and see the origins of a classic episode. As for the Ellison debate? I'm not even touching that one.

dickh's review against another edition

4.0

First, this is really two books. The first part is a lengthy diatribe by Harlan Ellison, venting his spleen at Gene Roddenberry. Personally, I enjoyed this because there is no one, never has been and never will be, who does this quite so well as Harlan Ellison. If you were going to enter a word fight, you would always want Mr. Ellison as your hired gun. The second part is the original teleplay for the very well known Star Trek episode of the same name. After you read the teleplay, you realize how vastly superior this version is compared with the televised episode and you are left wondering, why would anyone not have filmed Ellison's original version with no changes? The script is phenomenal.

nealumphred's review against another edition

5.0

The truth about the most famous and most controversial script from the original "Star Trek" series from the 1960s. If you think that the sun rises and sets on Gene Roddenberry, perhaps you should skip this and read some fan/fic.